Orders
by PurpleMoon3
Summary: What if area 44 lived up to it's name? Double character death, challenge response. DosuXHina
1. Orders Recieved

**Orders**

**Disclaimer: We do NOT own Naruto that belongs to the genius of plot holes, Masashi Kishimoto.**

**Summary: What if the Forest of Death lived up to its name? For a shinobi, the mission comes first. Set around chunin exam. HinaXDosu (cracktastic) **

**This was another forum challenge that I took up, the sentence we had to expand on was (with minor alternations to fit in my text) :"You know.." Zaku commented as they left the battle ground. "When Orochimaru-sama ordered us to kill the Uchiha I was looking forward to a decent challenge, but slitting him and his friend's throat while they slept just felt kinda...anti-climactic, y'know?"**

**Chapter One: Orders Received**

Kin walked through the underground complex filled with nervous excitement. Her skills were mediocre, she would admit to herself, and yet Orochimaru-sama saw fit to enter her into the chunin exams in Konoha! She passed a group of depressed looking prisoners but only gave them a cursory glance. Once upon a time she had been one of them, a child from a poor family that couldn't give tribute to the new shinobi leader, and instead offered their youngest daughter.

She had spent a year in the cages unnoticed with the rest, waiting to be used for experimentation, before he took notice of her. It was a miracle the golden eyed man saw her or rather heard her humming along to some tune he himself had been idly humming. She had good ears and her chakra coils were unusually strong for a civilian. She was allowed into the shinobi training program, not to be used for human experimentation. At least, not in any capacity that would kill her.

Kin resisted the urge to rub her lower arms where countless needles had poked into her veins and pumped various hormones and drugs into her body. If it weren't for her leather bracers people would think she was a druggie or something from the scars. It hurt to grow up so fast, but Orochimaru-sama needed the information and she was glad to be useful. Better than a prisoner. Better than a non-person.

She was a somebody. She was Kin Tsuchi, genin kunoichi of the Sound, soon to be chunin. Maybe. Probably. So long as she didn't die.

Kin had no intention of dying as she paused at the thick heavy doors marking the entrance to the audience chamber. Swallowing her fear because she knew she had been summoned, Kin rapt she door sharply with her knuckles and opened the door. Orochimaru-sama was in his usual loose robes, a soft gray, sitting in a relaxed almost lazy position. It was a bit rude, her mother's finely ingrained manners grumbled in her mind, but he was a sannin and she was no threat. She was amazed to be considered up for promotion, anyway.

Kin let her eyes scan the room to take in the other occupants. Dosu Kinata was waiting in a crouched position close by, but she could forgive him because of his arm. He was one of the experiments, a horrendous melding of man and machine and for what? Kin honestly didn't know but she had heard that his taijutsu was dangerous. Never get into close combat with him, even the misses will 'fuck you up' as her acquaintances had said.

The kunoichi gave a respectful nod to the other genin after bowing to the exiled sannin, not so much exiled anymore. He had, after all, gotten invitations to send a team of genin to the chunin exams in Konoha though the leaf nin didn't really know it was him. The irony wasn't wasted on the snake summoner and he had meshed together a plan with his genius mind in days.

That was the rumor, anyway. Kin wouldn't have been surprised if the man had planned everything from the beginning, his founding of a hidden village only part of it. Pity they needed the Sand to pull it off.

Faintly the sound of running feet came to her ears, overly sensitive that they were, and Kin turned back to the door. The running feet slid to a stop, a burst of chakra keeping the unknown upright, and the door opened. Zaku Abumi entered with a slight sheen of sweat, and factoring in his earlier running Kin could safely say he had been out in the training grounds. He must have run all the way through the maze-like village to arrive so soon.

She caught Orochimaru's mouth quirk in amusement as the boy regained his breath. He shifted, his movement's fluid like a snakes, and he watched them. "Do you know why you are here?"

Kin had her suspicions, but it was hard to tell if it was a rhetorical question. Orochimaru-sama was hard to judge. Seeking to fill the silence Kin offered with false confidence, "To follow your orders, Orochimaru-sama, whatever they may be."

Zaku shot her a glare, and it irked her. From Dosu's slight narrowing of the eye, he only had one visible as most of his face was wrapped in bandages, he didn't like the other boy much. Zaku was another of the experiments, but his wasn't as drastic as Dosu's. He still looked and moved relatively normal even though his attacks were so-so.

Kin had heard, thanks again to her great ears, some medics refer to the emotional boy as _Orochimaru's failure_. She still wasn't sure if it was because of the experiment or the boy himself. What she did know was that people didn't like working with him because he was headstrong and easily took to insults.

"That too." Orochimaru replied to her comment with an amused smile. "As you may already know, you three will be our representation in Konoha for the chunin exams."

Zaku visibly fought down a cry of glee. Kin nodded to herself, she had been told to prepare earlier though she did not know who else was nominated. Dosu was expressionless.

The village leader continued. "You will be entering as a team, as per regulations. Utuke-kun will serve as your jounin-sensei." A faint sneer showed what the man thought of _that_ little tradition. Unlike most hidden villages, Sound didn't do jounin-sensei. They didn't even use teams. After three years of group conditioning/basic training genin were expected to make deals with their seniors for further teaching or learn on their own between missions. Kin lost count of how many _favors_ she performed for her genjutsu training. "However your main goal is not to pass, though, by all means do so if you wish. You're true mission is to eliminate Uchiha Sasuke."

Kin nearly shivered from the grin. Orochimaru-sama was just plain disturbing; brilliant and awe-inspiring, but disturbing nonetheless. Still, she wouldn't fail. With her eyes remaining on the older ninja, she scanned her new teammates. Dosu was... he didn't show anything. Straining her senses all she got was a faint ticking noise, or was it a heart beat? Zaku, the idiot, was looking at her and Dosu as if weighing their worth. Dumbass. Not subtle at all. _Orochimaru's failure is right. He calls himself a ninja?_

Surprisingly Dosu was the one to speak up. "Uchiha Sasuke, sir?"

Uchiha? Kin frowned. Didn't that clan get wiped out by a berserker a few years ago? She remembered her father laughing about it, right before they shipped her off.

"Ah, yes. Take the dossier." Zaku walked up and grabbed a set of thin folders. Kin took one, and was amazed at the amount of technical information on their target. "Surprised? Konoha's security standards aren't exactly... good. They're quite laughable really. That'll come in handy when we begin the invasion."

"When do you want this kid dead, Orochimaru?" Zaku spoke with a familiarity that irked the long haired girl. She wanted to smack him. Luckily the snake sannin either didn't care or notice.

"The best time to do it would be during the second portion of the exam. As we are currently in a time of peace... I believe it will take place in area forty-four."

"There are two portions?"

The man's knowing smiles were getting creepy. Seriously. "Three, actually. The first will be a written test which, depending on who the proctor is, should be easy to pass. I'm inclined to believe it will be either Anko-chan or Ibiki-san. The trick to the first test is to cheat."

The three genin gave confirmation that they understood and waited for further information.

"The second test will involve gathering a pair of scrolls. You will be left in a large training field, forest, and then to battle it out. A few deaths during this part is normal, your activities will go unnoticed."

Kin felt a smirk blossom on her lips at that. They could probably have a huge orgy during the middle of the test and no one would question it. _Actually, that would make a good distraction, and anyone who saw it would assume genjutsu. _

She needed to stop reading those little orange books.

Once again it was Dosu who spoke up, and Kin thought she detected a hint of resentment. "And the third part of the exam?"

Orochimaru-sama waved his hand as if it was unimportant but spoke as if he was doing so to small children. "That will undoubtedly consist of you three pummeling someone in one-on-one fights. Though, depending on how many pass the second test you might get stuck in a preliminary."

Confused now, Kin looked up from the time-table in the dossier. "I was under the impression that the attack would be a month from this time."

"It is. That's when the third round will take place. Gives a month to rest up so that the spectators can get a good show." Now, apparently tired with questions, Orochimaru dismissed them with a wave and a light threat of killing intent. The three genin scooted into the hall.

Kin tucked the folder under her arm and regarded the other two with undisguised annoyance. Dosu she didn't mind as much, but he was still weird. Zaku was an ass.

"I can't believe I got paired with an insignificant girl like _you_."

Insignificant? "At least I'm not full of air. I heard about your little exhibition fight in the woods, _failure._" If he wanted to exchange insults, he would have to do better than that. Kin had spent a year in the cages and wasn't about to roll over. He didn't even spend one week.

The boy's face screwed up with rage, and his hand twitched as if he wanted to attack her. She gave a predatory grin and had three senbon in her hand before he could blink. Dosu sighed and stepped between them as his bulk was a sizable obstacle for their mock fight to overcome. That and the underground halls of Otokagure were kind of cramped for fighting.

"We're supposed to be a team, for this. We can't get into the exams unless we all go." A voice of reason.

"Heh. Just don't get in my way, girl." Zaku finished as he gave to Dosu's authority. Kin chose not to reply, she could take him out with genjutsu in an instant. Thus team dynamic formed.

"We should at least do some missions together, so we can see where we stand with each other." Dosu offered, quietly. If she had one, Kin would have tipped her hat.

"I heard there are a few nomadic bandit camps around the east villages."

"Bandits? Nice... but you wouldn't want to get you're skirt bloodied up, would you girl?"

Kin refrained from grinding her teeth and smiled brightly. "I don't know, scarlet would look good on me, don't you think?"

She watched as something clicked in his big, jerk head. He actually laughed. "That was a good one. What's your name?"

"Kin."

"No last name?"

Dosu once again stepped in. "I doubt we will remain partnered long enough for it to matter, as attachments are useless. We only have two weeks to prepare."

Zaku laughed again as they walked toward the exit, presumably to begin hunting bandits. "Got that right, I'm Zaku."

"Yes." Dosu replied coolly. "I read it in the file."

"Oh? You must read really fast, like some kind of machine."

Kin resisted the urge to slap her forehead. If he wasn't picking a fight with her he was trying to get one with Dosu. Hopefully the other boy wouldn't fall for it. The girl giggled as Zaku's taunting face leaned a little too close to the annoyed experiment, and recoiled in pain. Her ears stung a little from the released pressure of whatever the attack had been, but she was sure to get used it. Eventually.

"Hey, Kin. Why is your hair so long? Don't you ever step on it, and, man look at those split ends!"

She wasn't sure she would get used to Zaku, however, and repeated the mission parameters in her mind like a protective mantra.

END.


	2. Orders Fulfilled

**Orders**

**A Naruto Fanfic**

**Time: Chunin Exam Stage Two**

**Chapter Two: Orders Fulfilled**

Zaku was bored, and as both of his teammates would attest to that was not a good thing. A bored Zaku meant headaches for all. "So what did you guy's think of the first test? That examiner? I didn't Konoha were such wimps." He sneered having thought Morino Ibiki's demonstration scars were lame. "I mean those scars, lame. Anyone who dropped out doesn't deserve to be chunin, same for those that thought the guy was intimidating."

"Arrrg. My god, Zaku, did you even read the bloody mission packet?" Kin growled as she rebounded off a tree while they headed deeper into the forest of the second exam. Dosu was guiding them using his built in, things, so the other two were free to bicker without much to worry about. "He was the head of Konoha's torture and interrogation unit. He WAS intimidating, you're just too thick for anything to get through your head!"

"Take that back little miss bells!" Zaku hissed, not because he really cared about the insult be because she had pulled down her eye lid and was sticking her tongue out at him. She was also showing off her skill at jumping through the tree branches. Backwards. It was a terrible blow to his pride. "It's not like getting his head cut up can come close to some of the stuff we put up with."

Kin blinked, and even Dosu turned his head to look at his companions. Zaku always got ticked if someone suggested disloyalty or bad mouthed their village leader and his experiments. He was so gung-ho and determined to prove that the time put into him and his arms was not a waste. He was not a failure.

This was the first time that the boy had ever hinted at pain and unhappiness with his lot. "These arms didn't come cheap, you know." He continued brushing off their curious gazes; or not noticing them. He wasn't very bright. "And I imagine whatever machine-man over there is hiding isn't too comfortable either. Course you got your own dirty secrets, right miss bells?"

They continued through the forest, Dosu hanging and left and they followed suit presumably to go after another team. They couldn't be sure who it was but they could try for the scroll; always better to have extras.

Zaku pondered on his own words. As much as he owed Orochimaru for getting him off the streets and teaching him to fight, it had hurt. For the first three months and during the operation, the thing had taken five days straight, his arms had felt like liquid fire and he only received the bare minimum of pain killer. Most of the time he had been strapped down to a bed to prevent him from hurting himself.

And for what? He blew air out of his arms at a high pressure but he was slow, his reaction times took too long to build the necessary chakra. He needed to be faster. He needed to be better to show he wasn't a waste.

Sometimes he envied Kin. He saw her washing her hands after the bandit fight to get blood and dust off, saw the track marks up her arm. Fourteen, looked like she was seventeen or eighteen. She was a successful run, proof that the right mixture of drugs could speed up growth and not permanently damage the body or leave weak hormone glands. Or something. Zaku wasn't sure of the technicalities.

Dosu was like him though. He was blended with machine during Orochimaru's metal phase when he tried to make better ninja by combining organic and inorganic matter into a true human weapon. Zaku wasn't sure how much of his team leader was alive and how much merely hung on. He wondered if he was even human, he rarely raised his voice or showed interest in anything but the mission.

"Hidden Grass."

Kin's voice dragged him out of his thoughts and he smiled in anticipation as his chakra worked to pull and compress air to be ready for a fight. "Think they have our scroll?"

Dosu arched an eyebrow. "Wouldn't know. We should avoid them and move back, our goal is Uchiha Sasuke, not finishing the test."

Zaku emitted a strangled whine. "But they are _right _there." He pointed to the two genin in face masks sitting in a shielded clearing. At Kin's direction the sound trio had dispelled the passive genjutsu that hid the grass genin from other eyes. Kin made a snide comment on how it would have been a good piece of work if not for the forgotten details. In a forest, absence of sound was as telling as a bright neon sign. "Can't we make a showing, at least?"

"After the mission. The sooner we complete it, the sooner you can go on your destruction spree." Dosu replied as they slid away from the hidden grass duo back into the trees.

* * *

It had taken longer than expected to locate the target, mostly from the prolonged battles they had to detour around, much to Zaku's displeasure. It taken everything he had not to jump into the fights and join in. One clearing had been tainted with gore, a sure sign of the Sand team's passage.

They found team seven holed up under the roots of tree, though only the girl was awake. Her eyelids were drooping and her limbs shook occasionally in exhaustion. If she was that bad off and on sentry duty the other two had to be near dead.

"This is too easy." Zaku grumbled, his fists clenching in irritation. "I'm going to have that pink bitch wake 'um up." He started forward but was once again stopped by Dosu's thick arm. The others single eye slid over to the other with a hard gleam.

"Appearances can be deceiving. See that?" His unencumbered arm pointed to a tiny glimmer in the grass. Grass that just happened to be a shade off from the surroundings. "Trap."

"She dug a pit, so what?"

"...while I am glad you noticed the obvious pit, I was pointing to the trip wire. Considering how well she answered the questions, her physical failings may hide a high intellect. My guess is this wire was placed to misdirect us from something else."

The other boy slumped and threw wistful glances at the as yet unaware kunoichi. "So what? We just sit here twiddling our thumbs?"

"I have a better idea. Kin? Could you catch us a squirrel or something?" Dosu asked mildly as he went through his ninja pouch searching for explosive notes. Kin smirked and hopped off twirling wire for a snare.

"What are going to do with a tree rat? It's not lunch yet." While he wasn't one to pass up a free meal, it was plainly inappropriate to stop everything and eat. Especially when the target was only a few yards away, unconscious, begging to be killed.

"You are an idiot."

* * *

To be honest, Zaku was hoping the plan wouldn't work and give him a chance to fight. He was happily surprised that it didn't. Of course Dosu, the annoying bastard that he was, just had to come up with not one but three contingency plans.

The first plan involved sending the squirrel out with an explosive note attached. Ideally it would make it close to the pink girl, Sa- something, and they would activate it and watch as all of team seven exploded into little bitty pieces. The simplest plan and most efficient but it didn't let him have any fun. Dosu was the one that was setting the explosive off anyway.

If that did not work the squirrel would at the least trigger the supposed matrix of traps, clearing the area so they could strike. Zaku could use his arms to lend strength to the explosion and maybe take out the two sleeping genin if the girl leapt to safety. Should that fail they would then jump in and take the approach of direct confrontation.

Amazingly enough, even through Dosu's lack of reaction suggested he expected it, the girl tossed a kunai and scared off the brown rodent before it even got to the first trap. A grin formed on the excited boys face as he jumped to his feet. Happy day! Now he could get some action.

Zaku crushed a stick under his foot and stepped out; Dosu coming up behind him menacingly. "Guess our little trick didn't work. Heh."

Sakura gulped and shifted backward. Zaku threw down a kunai carelessly and cut the trap wire. "Opps." He gave a slow haunting laugh at the look on the girl's face. She was terrified. "Did you actually think we wouldn't see that?"

Dosu took the lead but paused an inch away from the concealed pit. He leaned down and spoke with a practiced sneer in his voice, anyone who knew him would recognize it as false, but the Konoha brat wouldn't. He cleared the dry leaves and grass away in one motion assisted by his arm. "You call this a trap? The grass is a completely different shade from everything else. How the hell did you make it this far?"

"I-I'll admit that was pretty bad..." They detected an undertone of confidence from her. Did she actually have that much faith in her fighting skill? Or, more likely, had she just cracked from the stress of the exam. It wouldn't be the first time a genin lost it during the test. "But who said anything about those being the only ones!"

Faster than they thought possible she cut a string behind her, activating a trap out of sight. The rush of displaced air was their only warning and, luckily, it was coming from Dosu's side. The mechanical man detected a fraction earlier with his built in instruments and brought up a steel reinforced hand to block with.

Zaku laughed as the log that would have cracked a few ribs was reduced to splinters. "Any more tricks, girl? You're outnumbered, but as I'm the sporting type I'll let you wake your little friends. It's Sasuke we came for, anyway."

Fear crept into the girl as she backed up, retreating into the root burrow. "W-why do you want Sasuke-kun?! Do you know Orochimaru?!" Her green eyes flashed between the two Sound boys full of anxiety, her hands ready with kunai.

"Orochimaru?" Dosu asked aloud, curious. What would a lowly genin know of their mission? _Why would she know of the mission?_ He squashed his questions and refocused on the plan. Zaku had just wanted to plow in, and in any other instance Dosu would have allowed the trigger happy boy to do so, but he didn't want to risk any chance of their quarry getting away. He had to die, and they were ninjas.

"Wake him up, bitch!" Zaku hollered as if trying to do it himself. "I want'a fight, damnit!"

The girl swallowed and seemingly snapped out of her shock, determination settling her nerves. "...I don't want to watch their backs anymore... I won't let you hurt Sasuke-kun!!!" She snarled like a feral animal and charged forward, triggering another trap that forced Zaku to take cover from a volley of small sharpened sticks.

The Konoha nin launched a round of kunai where he landed, to which Zaku responded with a snort as he blasted the blades back with a rush of air pressure. Chakra ran through his arms in a constant, intoxicating, stream. The girl switched out with a log, of which there were plenty in the forest, and appeared behind him with a fresh supply of shuriken mixed in with kunai. Zaku blasted them back, again.

"Quit playing around!" Dosu ordered as he walked toward the unconscious genin, his teammate was needlessly dragging the encounter out.

"Don't touch Sasuke-kun!" Sakura screamed hysterically as she stopped the hunched over boys advancement with a line of kunai.

"Is that all you can do, kawarimi and throw stuff?" Dosu asked derogatorily.

Sakura came at him from above with her leg extended in a textbook drop kick, as if in rebuttal, but it did her no good. Dosu stepped to the side to avoid her, caught the leg and squeezed. She screamed as he tossed her effortlessly back to his teammate. Through a haze of pain she twisted midair and brought a kunai to bear on Zaku.

He replied by blasting her with a mixture of air pressure and mental concussion waves; she expected it and kawarimid out just in time. However, instead of appearing close to Zaku she landed in an odd crouch between the two boys, hands bristling with glistening shuriken. Both of her targets made the connection. _Poison!_

The stars sliced through the air at the two boys with their liquid death, they assumed, and did not want to risk coming into contact with it. Zaku used his arms to change the direction of the shuriken back to Sakura, while Dosu responded in a similar manner with his own augmented arm. The kunoichi rolled away smoothly after releasing her weapons and used the replacement technique to retreat; her plan successful.

Too late the boys realized their mistake and dodged. A few of the shuriken collided and fell to the ground, but the majority continued their course. Still recovering from the earlier blast Zaku couldn't deflect the weapons and cursed as one grazed his upper arm close to the shoulder. Dosu blocked with his melody arm causing a sickening ringing to echo through the clearing.

The pink haired girl collided with Zaku, but had abandoned all pretense of attack in favor of covering her ears as her eyes watered. The Sound genin themselves were having a little trouble from the chaotic vibrations and stalled until Dosu regained control. "Bitch!" Zaku kicked Sakura's side as she whimpered, a trail of blood leaking from her covered ears. His stomach was queasy from the brief cacophony, and he blamed her.

"Leave the weakling alone, Zaku."

The boy looked up to see Kin next to their target, his head hanging limply by the hair in her hand. Blood was dripping from his neck and pooling on the ground.

The third plan was the backup. Kin would go around in a circle, staying hidden; to give the illusion that it was just the two of them. She would then sneak up while the Uchiha was unguarded and kill him thus completing the mission despite anything else that may happen like back-up arriving or a rival foreign team.

"Ahhhhh. I wanted to do it!" Zaku whined before giving the girl a final kick and jogging over to his teammate. His face was twisted into a pout and reminded Kin of an ugly puppy. "Can I at least kill the blonde?"

"Go ahead." She shrugged and tossed him the kunai she'd used to execute the comatose Uchiha.

Zaku fumbled and cut his fingers, but blamed the paralysis poison that had coated the shuriken. He crouched and jerked up the blonde head as Dosu kept watch, standing over the pink haired genin with one foot placed on her lower back. She stared at the Uchiha's head in horror, mumbling about genjutsu, tears streaming down her face as Zaku reached around to the distant jugular. "Stop! Please!"

Blue eyes began to peek open tiredly. "Oh good!" Zaku said happily. "Just in time to die!"

"Wha-?" Was all Naruto had time for as he felt his neck open up in a wide gash that cut from one side to the other. Blood sprayed out in shot bursts like a broken fountain and dyed his orange jumpsuit red. It died down to a slow frothing but Zaku held Naruto's head back nearly ripping it off. Sakura screamed again as she caught sight of the small spinal bones and passed out.

"You know.." Zaku commented as they left the battle ground. "When Orochimaru-sama ordered us to kill the Uchiha I was looking forward to a decent challenge, but slitting him and his friend's throat while they slept just felt kinda...anti-climactic, y'know?"

"Indeed, judging from the information we have on the Uchiha I was expecting a more difficult battle, but we are shinobi. We take what-so-ever advantage we're given."

Kin was running her fingers through her hair. "I'm more curious as to who they fought before we found them. He must of been strong, I checked the chakra coils on both, just in case, and they were seriously fucked up."

"Well... can we go fight those Grass nin now?"

Dosu rolled his eye. "You do realize you can't move your arm at this point?"

"That's never stopped me before!" Zaku replied with a smile as Kin put it in a sling. They didn't have any antidote with them, but they might find some on another team, and if they didn't surely it would wear off by the time they got to the tower?

END


	3. Orders Abandoned

**Orders**

**A Naruto Fanfic **

**Chapter 3: Orders Abandoned**

The mission had been accomplished with surprising ease, but Dosu wasn't content with just that. Truthfully, neither were Kin and Zaku. All three of them had put in countless hours of pain and training to be the most capable shinobi they could be and deep inside they wanted someone to acknowledge it. They wanted to make chunin and, with their assassination mission completed under the best cover, they had a chance.

At least skill wise they earned the title. What had not been factored into Dosu's calculations was the human part of the equation, the Zaku part. "He does realize that all three of us have to be present to enter the tower, does he not?" The male genin questioned his female counterpart as they waited at the gate, only a foot away from the safe zone.

Kin's arms were crossed under her breasts as she stared out into the dense foliage. The corner of her lip was turned down in irritation. "Yes. I'm more worried about if he slept in and lost track of time." Dosu heard the tiny joints in her hand pop from tension. "Why did we agree to this again?"

"Three minutes." Dosu commented in answer, subtly moving closer to his teammate. Kin quickly took the hint, they had in actuality fifteen minutes to the deadline, and cocked her head in the direction he indicated. With a bit of concentration she identified the incoming genin and plucked at a pair of thin wires leading toward the arriving team. Her chakra would mingle with the alloy of the connected bells, and confuse the other genin long enough for her to reach their position...

As sound specialized ninja, they heard the disturbance before they felt it, but the forewarning didn't help much. Gusts of wind tore through the trees as disjointed feedback traveled up Kin's chakra sensitive wires. The kunoichi dropped the faintly glowing threads like they were live snakes and tried to protect her eyes with a forearm as dead leaves, dirt, branches, and for some strange reason clothing blasted around their position. _Zaku..._ "Cut it out, Zaku! We get that your arm is better!" The girl shouted over the sound of the wind.

Slowly the gale lessened and a slightly embarrassed Zaku walked out of the path he had made with his wind attack; two freshly procured scrolls in hand. "Heh. I guess I went a little overboard with that one. 75 percent."

"Yes." Dosu practically hissed, which was unusual in its sincerity. The boy was brimming with annoyance despite his built in monitors attempting to sooth him. "We should get going."

They hopped over the dividing line and entered the tower. Kin was busy patting down her frazzled hair and sending glares toward Zaku. Zaku was trying to compare their total number of scrolls. In a simple count of numbers the fewer teams made it through the second test the more likely they would receive promotion. Dosu's plan was to split up and meet back on the morning of the last day with the intent to collect as many heaven and earth scrolls as possible to knock out the competition.

This not only increased their chances but allowed Zaku to work out his battle-lust and give the other two Sound-nin much needed time away from him. All total, they had seven heaven and four earth.

It had been a long four days and with a breath of relief they rolled out a pair of scrolls and waited. "Huh." As expected one of the Konoha proctors appeared with smoke from the summons. As unexpected he was dripping wet, naked, but still had a senbon clenched between his teeth. "You caught me while I was in the shower. Ironic. I had avoided taking one this whole time in case something like this happened, but then I told myself 'Genma, there's only a few minutes left. If those kids were going to make it they would have finished by now. Chances are they were killed or eaten, or killed and eaten.'" He shook his head; little droplets of water flew from his wet hair.

Dosu cleared his throat with a strange sounding grumble in an effort to both focus their proctor and get his female teammate to stop staring. It was like she hadn't seen the male bits and pieces before. _Come to think of it, has she? Kin's only fourteen._

"...ah. Anyway, you guys get this right?" He jerked his thumb in the direction of the previous Hokage's saying that was posted on the wall. "If you lack knowledge go get it, if you're weak do some strength training."

The trio nodded, though Kin was a little slow.

"Good. You're sensei is probably in the lounge area waiting, down the hall and to the left." Genma shifted the senbon to the other side of his mouth and gave the nearly recovered girl a wink as he formed the typical hand sign and used the basic substitution technique. A sud covered scrubbing brush announced his departure with a clatter.

Zaku waved a hand in front of Kin's now liberated eyes. "Kiiiiiin." He dragged out her name with a teasing smile. "You're bluuuuuuushing."

Dosu's smirk was hidden behind his mask of bandages as a slap echoed through the room as they exited; Zaku scowled and held a hand to his burning cheek. The halls were devoid of people, though that could have easily been because of the upcoming exam prelims. "We should report to Orochimaru-Sama." Dosu commented as Kin took the lead in an embarrassed huff.

"Yeah. Left, right?"

Dosu's eye swept the lounge area and easily picked out their master, not from the forehead protector but other signs. The man had a graceful tension about him like that of his summons, and eyes that always burned with passion and intelligence. Any ninja would recognize him as dangerous and suspicious, so why was he ignored by the Konoha contingent? Did they choose to ignore him?

Orochimaru glanced up at them, eyebrow arched in surprise. Golden eyes gleamed with curiosity and he rose to walk toward them. "Ah, Kinuta."

"…Master."

The trio followed the graceful sannin from the room, Dosu frowned at an overheard 'ducklings' comment. They weren't mindless, and they certainly weren't water fowl.

* * *

"I imagine you had some difficulties with your mission." Orochimaru commented as they stood on a small balcony of the tower. He spoke with an undertone of amusement that confused (though they hid it well) his underlings.

Kin sat balanced on a handrail with her back to the forest, Zaku was leaning against it, and Dosu stood stooped beside them. "Actually, Master," Kin started to give her report, pausing for only a second as the gold serpentine eyes turned to her. "It was surprisingly simple. The Uchiha was-"

She stopped at the slightly raised hand. "You mean to tell me you _killed _the _last Uchiha._" Her heart stopped as a cold fury built around them. Images of her own death by impalement, starvation, strangulation, and a thousand other ways danced before her eyes. The sensors built into Dosu lit up and began spilling statistics only he could see, something that annoyed the people who had worked on him to no end, and alarm coursed through him. He was the furtherest from the blast of killing intent but still felt it. He could only imagine what the other two, who didn't have cold emotionless machines filtering most of it, were experiencing.

Kin started shivering, only dimly aware of her teammate's presence. It was only her and Orochimaru-sama, who was displeased. "It was our orders, Master." She saw herself held up with wires as senbon were threaded in and out of her body while her hair smoldered. The image was so graphic she felt as if she was choking on the stench. He was very displeased.

"Our purpose was completed by executing the Uchiha while he was injured and asleep shortly before nightfall on the first day. The Uzamaki was also killed before he could recover from whatever had injured him, the Haruno girl was easily defeated in combat and left for dead." Dosu cut in for reasons unknown. He did it partially because he knew she didn't deserve the constant stream of hatred and partially because he had begun to suspect things. Even his equipment was flashing danger signs; reality was not computing with perceived instructions.

His female teammate raised a hand to her face as the killing gaze of their master left her, her nose had started bleeding.

"I see." Orochimaru hissed. "So you attacked soon after I left my gift, too soon…" The sannin trailed off as his anger broiled under the cool mask of composure. Subconsciously the trio inched closer together. Solidarity. "My plans…" He stared at them, nostrils flaring and pupils turning to pinpricks. The sound genin knew, at that moment in time nothing would have pleased Orochimaru more than to see their dead and mangled bodies fall to the foot of the tower. He could do it, if he wished.

The snake summoner's arm shot to the side in chop that, had someone been standing by him, would have killed. "Go. It will be suspicious if you aren't at the preliminaries after arriving so quickly."

Dosu was certain that was the only reason they left the balcony alive.

* * *

The girl crouched hidden among the leaves. She stifled a giggle and clenched her kunai tighter as she thought about that statement. She was kunoichi of the village hidden in the leaf, hiding in the leaves. They were her and she was them.

Sakura slowly shifted backwards and padded back to her home. They were looking for her, but she would prove them wrong. She would prove to them, to _Ino_ and _Kakashi _and her _parents_ and _everyone_. She would prove she wasn't weak and stupid; a girl to be protected. She grinned widely and continued on her way, pausing at irregular intervals and listening for signs of pursuit.

Hearing none, she took to the trees for faster passage. Sasuke was waiting for her at home, he was such a nice guy to wait for her. And Naruto, he was annoying sometimes but he had been quieter lately, and she made sure he knew she appreciated his control over himself. The girl giggled.

"Ah! Sakura! Where are Sasuke and Naruto?"

Sakura screeched and jumped back, her kunai held before her oddly. Kakashi frowned beneath his mask as looked at his student. Mud and dead leaves had been caked in her hair disguising the vibrant pink. Dirt and some other substance had dried and crusted in patches on her clothing, which was torn in places. Mud had also been smeared on most of her exposed skin, _for mosquito protection_, the jounin thought.

What was most disturbing was her kunai. It had been sharpened over and over again in a manic frenzy. It was only a thin but incredibly sharp blade.

Sakura bounced on the balls of her feet, her eyes darting around the forest searching for more interlopers. "Sakura," Kakashi said slowly, palms open and up. "Where are Sasuke and Naruto."

His only answer was an inarticulate growl, and a burst of uncontrolled chakra.

* * *

All three of the sound squad voted to enter the prelims, it was as much from a survival sense as a wish for promotion. They watched the other matches alone, their supposed jounin sensei absent. So far Dosu, Lee, Kankuro, and Shikamaru had all won their matches and been passed to the next round. The electric board buzzed and ran through the match ups. A gray haired jounin, Kakashi Hatake their folder had said, appeared.

Zaku noted the slumped shoulders as the man walked over the only female jounin. "You were right." The man said, his voice empty.

Kurenai blinked and stepped back, her students milling around her. "What are you talking about?"

Down on the area floor the proctor called for the next contestants, Zaku and Shino. Zaku shivered as Kakashi's single eye tracked him to the floor, but quickly brushed off the feeling. "Guess you guy's just found out what happened to your precious genius, eh?" Zaku baited. It was easy to eaves drop in an open room.

"I would have applauded your ruthlessness had they not been leaf." Shino dead panned. Him and Dosu could have been brothers for all the emotion they showed. "May I ask why Haruno-san was left alive?"

They walked their paces, waiting for the proctor to call their beginning. "She was weak and stupid, did get a few good hits though." Zaku gestured to his bandaged arm, the paralysis poison had been fully neutralized the day before but it was always good to have a trump card. "Can't say the same for the blonde. Didn't have the decency to wake up as I cut his throat!"

Dosu watched the exchange with a grimace hidden beneath bandages. They didn't need more trouble, not if what he suspected was going on. Wheels within wheels, and they were just the sacrificial lambs to bless the machine. _Damn you, Orochimaru. _They were being used, and used wrongly.

The fight was a good one, but Dosu could see the end. All his instruments pointed toward it because Zaku was too cocky and the Aburame too cold. He was angry cold like Orochimaru, but he was also a leader like Dosu. Aburame took care of his colony and his teammates. Somehow, the Sound nin wasn't surprised or upset when Zaku's arms exploded. He was annoyed, but there wasn't time for vengeance. He had other things to consider.

"Kin." The girl looked at the hand locked around her wrist, one foot on the stairs. "Careful. We cannot afford for any more… setbacks. I shall see you after in Zaku's room." His eye watched her, willing the importance to be imparted.

Confusion at his wording, but acceptance of the order, "Sure."

* * *

Hinata stared across at Kin with a blank face. Her features were slack as if in shock, but her pale eyes burned with emotion. There was no witty banter; no put downs commonly seen before two adolescents fought.

Kin reigned in her nerves and drew forth some senbon.

Hinata's byakugan activated without a word, the subcutaneous veins bulging angrily.

"Begin."

The Hyuuga cut the distance between the two silently as her hands began to shimmer with controlled chakra. Kin leaned back and was forced into a retreat, but not before firing off a trio of senbon. One cut her opponents cheek, one missed widely, and the other found itself stalled by a barrier of projected chakra.

Hinata closed her fingers around the hovering weapon and continued to press her attack, succeeding in bruising and cutting off most of the chakra in Kin's left arm. The Sound genin said nothing about the numbness as she tried to put distance between herself and the Hyuuga.

Kin attempted a genjutsu, just in case, but she knew it wouldn't work. The Hyuuga eyes saw through it and chakra enhanced blows with them.

Right. Right. Step. Jump. Left. Right. _Damn it! I can't get any distance!_ Kin mentally cursed and rolled to avoid the next strike. No matter how many times she got away the Hyuuga girl would catch up. At a distance she could avoid every thrown weapon, and close up her blows were deadly.

Kin shook out her hand as she landed behind the girl and willed it to recover faster. She could barely move them. "SHIT!" Hinata flicked her wrist and released the senbon Kin had used earlier, aiming with the aid of her bloodline. Kin fell backwards to avoid a needle to the heart and found herself staring directly at a pulsing blue palm of chakra.

"Tell me." Hinata whispered as the peanut gallery held it's collective breath. The proctor was walking toward them, coughing for a halt, but neither competitor was listening. "Why did you kill him?"

Kin swallowed. "We were ordered to. It was our mission, not this test." Hinata's blank expression didn't change, but the chakra winked out around her hand and her byakugan deactivated. Kin furrowed her brows in confusion. After Orochimaru and everything, she wondered why she wasn't dead yet. The girl could easily have done it. "Why didn't you kill me."

A single tear trailed down the short haired girls face. "…I don't think that would be something he would do." She straightened and stepped back. Hinata was declared the winner.

* * *

The medic finished bandaging her arms and left the room. Dosu watched him leave, his melody arm propped up on his knee. Zaku was in bed and filled with painkillers, but lucid. "That was stupid." The leader of their small group dead panned. "We didn't need to antagonize them anymore than we have."

"Why not? They'll be dead soon anyway." Zaku shrugged, and winced. A spot of red began growing on his bandages. There was a thirty percent chance he would never use them again and a higher chance one would never work quite right.

"So will we."

"What do you mean?" Kin crouched on her own bed, worried. She hadn't shook the feeling of her multiple deaths yet.

"We were not sent here for early infiltration. We were sent here to die, to be the sacrifices for one of _them_." Dosu spoke the last word with noticeable disgust, and his voice reverberated strangely from it.

For the first time in a long time, Zaku actually looked serious. He stared at his legs. "You mean… _them?_ That's impossible, only ten percent survive and even then, who in Konoha would possible have it?"

Dosu turned to Kin. "You remember what you said about the Uchiha's chakra, before you killed him?"

"It was strange… almost dark… and so twisted…"

"And Orochimaru didn't expect us to win. If we showed up after he had woken, we would likely be dead. We were test subjects to see how well the seal worked on him."

"N-No." Kin bit her lip. "He wouldn't do that. Not after everything, not after he put so much time into me. Into us. He wouldn't waste that! Why would he pull me out of the cages just to kill me? Why?"

"Kin's right." Zaku swung his legs off the bed. "Why would he pull me off the street and train us, just to die?"

"…let me ask you two something. Who put you in the cage to begin with? Why were you on the street?"

Silence.

"Orochimaru is a sannin. He wants to destroy Konoha, and he wants to live forever. We just killed his next vessel."

Dosu watched their heart rates increase. He heard the thumps and wondered how much he said was true and how much was simply an optimum projection. He didn't need the hardware fused into his flesh to tell him what to do. "…we're going to die…"

He stared at Kin as a flame of annoyance grew. "Shut up." They looked back at him, wounded. "Help me get Zaku up. We're leaving, we have a month, we better use it."

END.


	4. New Order

**Orders**

**Summary- In which Sasuke and Naruto are successfully murdered in the Forest of Death, and the repercussions of such an action. **

**Crack Couple Ahead.**

**Chapter Four: New Order**

Hinata was lounging on her side and nibbling at a cracker. She had a craving for liver and peanuts but declined to act on it just yet; who knew where the liver she received would come from? Her stomach was growing bigger by the day as her pregnancy went along and it was uncomfortable to rest on her stomach. She shoved the rest of the cracker in her mouth and sipped at a cup of water.

"Are you well?" Dosu, her husband in all but name, asked quietly from his corner of the bed. His right arm was detached and the inner workings exposed as he made repairs with his left. It was a sight Hinata was all too familiar with; you didn't sleep with someone without learning how his body operated.

The Hyuuga huffed and wriggled across the bed to set her head in his lap. "I'm having one of those cravings again."

Dosu stopped and shut the lid on his arm. He looked down at her and his artificial eye glowed a soft red as he asked, "Its not cherry yogurt and mashed potatoes again, is it?"

Hinata shook her head. He, or someone he ordered, would get whatever bazaar food she demanded. Sometimes she wondered if it was because she was one of the few Hyuuga left. _Maybe the only one left._

It had been hectic in those first few days so long ago. It seemed an eternity to Hinata. Once the Sand-Sound invasion started during the final round of the chunin exams there- had been no stopping it. With the genjutsu on the audience shinobi were able to move in without resistance and cut throats. Those that had detected the genjutsu and dispelled it did not number nearly enough to win the day.

Despite the setbacks Konoha had put up a good battle. The Hyuuga mansions had repelled the enemy focused on them, and the guards at the walls had faired fairly well against the giant summons. It could have ended in a draw in not for Sand's secret weapon, or rather not so much a secret. Konoha had files on every village's jinchuriki as per an old truce, but they had never thought one would be utilized in an inter-village war.

Once Shukaku was unleashed Konoha had no hope. Sound and Sand took heavy casualties as well, but they weren't hampered by the fact it was _their_ village in the line of fire. The invaders simply got out of the way and let the one tail wreak havoc. By the time Gaara woke up Konoha and several miles around had been reduced to a sand covered waste.

Hinata tapped her fingers along Dosu's leg absently. "Liver. I want some liver." How had she survived? She'd gone missing nin days before the finals, chasing after _his_ killers. Killer. Zaku was the only one she felt she had the right to kill, if anyone had the right to revenge in their profession.

Dosu made to move, presumably to fetch the organ for her consumption, but she clamped down on his leg. "Wait. It can wait." She wanted to be held, needed it with her mood swings increasing in frequency. She'd always hoped she could have _his_ baby, but he was dead. And his killer was still alive and wary of her attacks. She'd yet to kill him. "When is he getting back?"

Dosu rubbed her bare arm, eye roving around her nude body, and reached for a blanket. "He isn't due back for a while yet. We'll move again before he returns."

Hinata gave a very unlady like grunt as the machine-man hybrid draped the blanket over her shoulders. Once giving chase, she had eventually caught up to their little band of three. She'd attacked Zaku mindlessly and only stopped when a kunai pressed at her throat and a flustered kunoichi demanded to know how the invasion had gone and if Konoha survived.

With a brief truce the foursome learned what really happened, and alone, Hinata lost confidence. She integrated with them and wore dark glasses to hide her eyes, she did odd jobs with them. They survived. They found a bandit camp.

They beat the leader and all challengers thus becoming de-facto heads. Dosu was the one with the idea, to turn the camp of rouges and petty criminals into something more. Zaku, who always managed to detect her attacks seconds before they landed, thought it would be fun. Kin had the mind for organizing it. Hinata didn't care one way or the other; it had been tense those first few weeks and the trio only accepted her because they needed all the help they could get.

Orochimaru was still out there and they were on his to kill list for murdering Sasuke Uchiha, but now they had a potential camp of thieves and scoundrels to act as a shield. They took over and trained them into mercenaries and bounty hunters; gave them enough knowledge of chakra to give them an edge against all but experienced ninja. They always moved; it was necessary to stay ahead of the hunter-nin. No use in painting a welcome sign on their doorstep.

Hinata snuggled into Dosu, wrapped in the soft comfort of the blanket and his embrace, and sighed contentedly. Somehow they had fallen in together. She wasn't sure when it happened, it certainly wasn't love at first sight, but they matched. Her injured inside and his outside. It helped that he valued her eyes, she was always on scouting, and she was the group's princess. Heiress to a potentially extinct clan, she was invaluable. She may one day serve as a rallying point to Konoha loyal. Hinata hoped there was more to it than that, but she understood; her heart never pounded for anyone like it had _him._

"Are you positive you're fine?" Dosu rocked her softly.

Hinata murmured her assent, her eyes closing in exhaustion. The baby was stealing her energy but at the rate it was growing she could forgive it. Kin-chan, the two girls had started talking one day out of boredom and developed a friendship of sorts, didn't find boys interesting. Occasionally she picked out a man in their band for a night, and she certainly had favorites, but she never entertained the thought of a relationship.

"I can send Take to get whatever you want."

"Take?" Hinata wondered how large their little organization had grown. Only Kin knew the exact numbers, somewhere around hidden village proportions she had been told when asked, but as they'd moved they collected more people. Sometimes when they had a target that was especially talented they offered them the choice to join. Most accepted; the life of a criminal on the run was a lonely one and they knew that one couldn't watch one's own back all the time. When they got too big the group split, but information was constantly streaming through messengers between the groups and funds all went to common accounts.

If anything happened they would know. By now the only other organization they had to worry about was Akatsuki, but they didn't bother mercenaries. Usually.

"He was picked up in Urura, kinda old but powerful. Say's he was trained in Whirlpool."

"Sounds familiar." Hinata yawned. "I want liver for breakfast. With roasted peanuts and a bottle of cream."

"Of course." He leaned over and kissed her forehead. "Anything else, Hime?"

"I picked a name. Naruko. She'll be named Naruko."

"Sounds familiar."

Hinata didn't reply. She had banked the fire for _him_, but the spark was still there, and she burned at the same time for another. Dosu took care of her, loved her maybe, and she'd be true to him. Theirs was a new order, Dosu explained, and once Akatsuki had done whatever it planned with the demons, they would pick up the pieces from the chaos. They would be there to restore order in the places devastated by demon rampage and gain unshakable footholds as people cried for help and guidance.

Eventually, when all was said and done, they would be the ones in power. They would rule the world.

END.

A/N- In case anyone was confused by that last bit, two words: Shadow Government.


End file.
